Hyosung Aquila GV250 vs KTM 390 Adventure [2021]

Touring is becoming a fashion among Indian motoring enthusiasts. And why should it not? We have vast expanse of open lands, biodiversity worth experiencing and some really good roads that are connected by many miserable ones with the difficulty level equivalent of playing Ping Pong with a Chinese national, giving riders a sense of achievement like no other.  Royal Enfield and Harley-Davidson have been capitalising on this pretty well for a while now and it is time that few others get to ride the wave, even if that won’t dent the sales of the big two. Hyosung is the front runner among the alternative premium motorcycle brands for cruisers and this time we test their new entry-level model, the Aquila 250.

Soft saddlebags seem to fit my bill. Yes, these are easier to steal from; these can suffer serious damage in a fast low-slide crash; and you need to carry them up to your room at every night halt. But then again, these are easy to carry; so there’s some respite there. More importantly, these aren’t as heavy or expensive as hard panniers, and with the right design, these can be completely waterproof too.

After having spent a thousand kilometres in them, through daily commutes, a couple of highway runs, and in fact a track outing, here’s a list of things we liked and didn’t about the Viaterra Grid.

It was going to be interesting to see how the stock package fares when subjected to some extreme challenges. A package that had majorly impressed us on the road.